SCRANTON, Pa. — Classes were back in session Friday for nearly 900 students from Northeast Intermediate in Scranton but at different schools.
Snow may have been falling all day, but for many kids, it felt like the first day of school after summer vacation -- the same nervous jitters, a few hectic moments.
students from northeast intermediate school in Scranton poured off the bus on this snowy first day back to school.
after missing six days, these students were not complaining about getting back in the classroom even if it meant that classroom was in a new building, with new classmates.
"She's been stuck at home, her parents are at work so she's home alone, more bored than anything," said Jim Talarico, an uncle of a seventh grader. "She was scared to go to a new building, but wanting to go back, and go to school and see her friends and what not."
The first day was a short one, with early dismissals because of the snow, possibly helping to ease some of the nerves and confusion at first.
"Because it's a new school, and it's big," said eighth grader Benedicte Bintu.
"It was good, just really hard to get around," said eighth grader Aceline Hernandez.
At West Intermediate, a teacher tells Newswatch 16 that accommodating the new students was fairly easy because the school is an open-concept building, meaning there are fewer walls and the large, open spaces are divided into classrooms.
At South Scranton, the students will all stay in one classroom throughout the day to prevent congestion in the hallways between classes.
"It seems like it's going to be pretty easy, besides staying in the same class all day because we're a little older now and we just want to move around," said eighth grader Jasmine Keller.
The students we spoke to say they were welcomed into their new schools with open arms.
At South Scranton Intermediate, the students there wrote welcome letters to the newcomers and cheered as they walked in.
"As soon as we got there, we were welcomed automatically. There was like a pathway where you walked through a bunch of students and they were like cheering you on and welcoming us into the building," said eighth grader Zoe Pinkney.
"I liked how the students did the cheer when we walked in, and the letters that we got, I got one, and it was really welcoming. it felt like I was just welcomed into the school very kindly and I loved it," Jasmine Keller said.
In a statement, the Scranton School Board says, due to community concerns, it has hired a new agency to conduct a second set of testing inside the building.
More than 1,400 people have signed a petition posted online demanding the school district publish air quality reports for Northeast Intermediate.
The school board says, "aggressive air testing," will be administered only after the necessary abatement work is complete.
The school board also says an asbestos inspector will have to clear the building before students are allowed to return which likely will not happen for a number of weeks.
So, in the meantime, students will be back on Monday, for their first full day at their new schools.
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